The Philadelphia Phillies lost their third straight game on Wednesday night, falling to the Mets 5-4. Their record drops to 3-6.
On The Mound
- Vince Velasquez lasted just five innings, allowing five runs on five hits and four walks.
- Velasquez recorded seven strikeouts, but once again ran his pitch count up to 100 after just five frames of work.
- Luis Garcia, just called up to take Adam Morgan’s roster spot, pitched a scoreless sixth.
- Pat Neshek got the team through the seventh with no damage allowed.
- Hector Neris gave up a hit, but also hung a zero in the eighth.
- Joaquin Benoit struck out two in a scoreless ninth.
At The Plate
- The offense generated four runs on six hits.
- All four of the team’s runs came in the sixth inning, on a grand slam from Maikel Franco.
- Cesar Hernandez went 2-4 at the top of the order with a couple of singles. His average has increased to .308.
- Howie Kendrick went 0-4.
- Odubel Herrera went 0-3 with a walk.
- Michael Saunders went 0-3 with a walk, dropping his average to .200.
- Tommy Joseph went 1-2 with a double.
- Cameron Rupp went 0-3, dropping his average to .125.
Final Thoughts
Too little too late for the Phils’ latest rally attempt.
The club was embarrassed by the Mets in this series. To allow New York to come in and take all three games is just unacceptable.
If not for Franco’s homer, the offense could have easily been shutout tonight. The team just isn’t getting enough from the heart of the order, with Michael Saunders and Tommy Joseph continuing to struggle and do nothing. Both guys have really only it the 17-run game against Washington last weekend.
Why hasn’t Pete Mackanin given more opportunities to Daniel Nava? Nava’s only start went extremely well, and he doubled in a pinch-hit appearance the other night. With Saunders struggling to get anything done out of the five-hole, I think the manager has to think about other options.
